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8 - The Rise and Decline of Organized Labor in the United States

American Unions from Truman to Trump

from Part II - What Has Changed?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2020

By
Raymond L. Hogler
Edited by
Brian J. Hoffman ,
Mindy K. Shoss  and
Lauren A. Wegman
Brian J. Hoffman
Affiliation:
University of Georgia
Mindy K. Shoss
Affiliation:
University of Central Florida
Lauren A. Wegman
Affiliation:
University of Georgia
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Summary

This chapter analyzes the expansion and collapse of labor union power in the United States from the postwar era to the administration of President Donald Trump. Union membership peaked in the mid-1940s and gradually declined until the early 1980s. It then slipped precipitously over that decade and in 2017 fell to levels not seen for nearly a century. Explanations for the decline include employer opposition, American social and political culture, and technological development. As union membership fell, income inequality rose. Research suggests that the economic condition of middle-class American workers is linked with union membership and collective bargaining. In 2016, white male American workers without college degrees strongly supported Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy, and his policies had a significant impact on them.

Keywords

labor unionscollective bargaininginequalityright to workNational LaborRelations BoardSupreme Court
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of the Changing Nature of Work , pp. 173 - 191
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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